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INDIAN  HEAD,  EAGLE  BLUFF— DOOR  COUNTY 


STATE    PARKS 


FOR 


WISCONSIN 


REPORT   OF 

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BY 

STATE   PARK   BOARD 


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CONTENTS 


PAGE 

I.     Justification  of  State  Parks                .             .             ,             _  ] 

II.     State  Parks  for  Wisconsin               ,             .            -            _  9 

III.  Requirements  of  State  Parks             -             -             -             -  12 

IV.  Available  Sites 16 

V.  Recommendations               -             -             -             -             -  26 

APPENDIX 


Letters  Concerning  State  Parks    -----  45 


PHOTOGRAPHIC  ILLUSTRATIONS 


The  Dalles  of  the  St.  Croix 

The  Dells  of  the  Wisconsin 

Proposed  Devil's  Lake  Reservation 

Proposed  State  Park  in  Door  County 

Proposed  State  Park  on  the  Mississippi  River  near  Wyalusing 


"In  Wildness  is  the  preservation  of  the  World.  .  .  .  The  story 
of  Romulus  and  Remus  being  suckled  by  a  wolf  is  not  a  meaningless  fable." 
— Henry  D.  Thoreau. 

"The  tendency  nowadays  to  wander  in  wildernesses  is  delightful  to 
see.  Thousands  of  tired,  nerve-shaken,  over-civilized  people  are  beginning 
to  find  out  that  going  to  the  mountains  is  going  home ;  that  wildness  is  a 
necessity ;  and  that  mountain  parks  and  reservations  are  useful  not  only  as 
fountains  of  timber  and  irrigating  rivers,  but  as  fountains  of  life.  Awaken- 
ing from  the  stupefying  effects  of  the  vice  of  over-industry  and  the  deadly 
apathy  of  luxury,  they  are  trying  as  best  they  can  to  mix  and  enrich  their 
own  little  ongoings  with  those  of  Nature,  and  to  get  rid  of  rust  and  dis- 
ease."— John  Muir. 


'"^'oF  THE 

fuNlVERStTY 

OF  .         -' 

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VISOR  LEDGE— DELLS  OF  THE   WISCONSIN 


NAVY  YARD— DELLS   OP  THE  WISCONSIN 


REPORT  OF  THE  BOARD 


To  his  Excellency,  JamES  O.  DAVIDSON, 
Governor  of  Wisconsin. 
Sir:     The  state  park  board,  appointed  in  conformity  with  chap- 
ter 495,  laws  of  1907,  to  investigate  and  report  to  you,  "regarding 
proposed  parks,  and  make  recommendations  regarding  the  acquire- 
ment of  any  new  parks,  etc.,"  beg  leave  to  report  as  follows: 

We  have  visited  the  different  places  suggested  as  appropriate 
places  for  the  establishment  of  state  parks  and  were  accompanied  by 
Mr.  John  Nolen,  Landscape  Architect  of  Cambridge,  Mass.,  a  man 
of  national  reputation,  and  have  gathered  information  from  many 
sources.  We  have  had  the  hearty  cooperation  of  the  leading  citi- 
zens in  the  different  localities  where  the  proposed  park  sites  were  sit- 
uated and  also  of  prominent  citizens  of  the  state,  who  have  shown  a 
great  interest  in  the  subject  of  state  parks,  and  a  willingness  to  loan 
any  assistance  to  this  board  within  their  power.  The  park  board 
have  attempted  to  sound  the  sentiment  of  the  people  of  the  state  in 
regard  to  the  establishment  of  state  parks  and  find,  among  all  classes 
of  people,  a  strong,  abiding  sentiment  in  favor  of  the  state  establish- 
ing parks  and  thus  preserving  the  great  natural  beauties  with  which 

[7] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

this  state  has  been  endowed,  from  commercial  vandalism  or  private 
ownership. 

We  believe  that  the  state  should  act  while  the  property  desired 
can  be  purchased  at  a  reasonable  figure  and  at  a  price  which  would 
prove  an  excellent  investment  from  a  purely  money  standpoint,  and 
that  if  action  is  postponed,  it  will  be  more  difficult  each  year  to  ac- 
quire these  beauty  spots  that  are  already  beginning  to  attract  the  at- 
tention of  wealthy  lovers  of  nature  all  over  the  world. 

We  submit  herewith  the  more  detailed  report  of  Mr.  John  Nolen, 
Landscape  Architect  of  Cambridge,  Mass.,  and  heartily  concur  in 
his  report  and  recommendations. 

Dated,  Madison,  Jan.  13,  1909. 

T.  E.  Brittingham 
W.  H.  McFetridge 
Edward  E.  Browne 


[8] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


Cambridge,  Mass., 

9  January,  1909. 

The  State  Park  Board, 
Madison,  Wisconsin. 
Gentlemen — I  present  below  my  report  on  State  Parks: 


I.  JUSTIFICATION  OF  STATE  PARKS 

To  justify  the  State  of  Wisconsin  in  establishing  a  system  of  State 
Parks,  a  clear  and  convincing  statement  should  be  presented  as  to 
their  purposes  and  value,  and  the  reasons  for  their  acquisition  at  this 
time. 

No  question  before  the  American  people  today  is  of  greater  im- 
portance than  the  conservation  of  our  natural  resources  and  the 
preservation  of  all  those  means  of  health  and  happiness  which 
through  selfishness  or  thoughtlessness  are  so  likely  to  be  destroyed. 
"We  declare  our  firm  conviction,"  said  the  Governors  of  the  States 
in  the  recent  White  House  Conference,  "that  this  conservation  of 
our  natural  resources  is  a  subject  of  transcendent  importance,  which 
should  engage  unremittingly  the  attention  of  the  Nation,  the  States 
and  the  People  in  earnest  cooperation.     These  natural  resources  in- 

[9] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

elude  the  land  on  which  we  live  and  which  yields  our  food;  the  liv- 
ing waters  which  fertilize  the  soil,  supply  power  and  form  great 
avenues  of  commerce ;  the  forests  which  jaeld  the  materials  for  our 
homes,  prevent  erosion  of  the  soil,  and  conserve  the  navigation  and 
other  uses  of  the  streams;  and  the  minerals  which  form  the  basis  of 
our  industrial  life  and  supply  us  with  heat,  light  and  power."  On 
the  economic  side  Wisconsin  is  fully  awake  to  the  importance  of 
these  questions.  It  is  quite  natural,  therefore,  that  the  State  should 
now  show  itself  equally  ready  to  consider  natural  resources  on  other 
sides, — those  related  even  more  directly  to  the  physical  and  moral 
health  and  the  happiness  of  the  people.  The  White  House  Con- 
ference appreciated  this  aspect  of  our  natural  resources  as  well  as  the 
economic,  and  declared,  "we  agree  that  the  land  should  be  so  used 
that  the  beauty,  healthfulness  and  habitability  of  our  country  should 
be  preserved  and  increased ;  that  sources  of  national  wealth  exist  for 
the  benefit  of  the  people  and  that  monopoly  thereof  should  not  be 
tolerated." 

The  value  of  parks  in  general  is  being  better  and  better  understood 
and  as  a  result  we  have  a  steadily  increasing  acreage  in  National, 
City  and  State  Parks.  The  purposes  of  these  parks  under  various 
jurisdictions  overlap  somewhat,  and  yet  in  each  case  they  are  more 
or  less  distinct  and  different.  The  greatest  confusion  perhaps  is  be- 
tween forests  and  parks.  Forest  lands,  it  should  be  remembered, 
are  selected  and  afterwards  maintained  primarily  with  regard  to  the 

[10] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

growth  of  timber  and  the  protection  and  regulation  of  the  water  sup- 
ply,— purposes  of  immense  importance  to  permanent  prosperity. 
Other  purposes  than  these  are  incidental  and,  if  considered  at  all, 
are  subordinate.  In  the  case  of  parks,  however,  the  main  purposes 
are  the  preservation  and  enhancement  of  natural  beauty  and  the  pro- 
vision for  recreation.  Park  purposes  other  than  these  may  be  taken 
into  account  but  they  must  be  quite  incidental.  Thus  the  minor  pur- 
poses of  forests  may  correspond  somewhat  with  the  major  purposes 
of  parks,  and  vice  versa ;  but  the  main  and  essential  purposes  of  each 
are  altogether  different  from  the  main  and  essential  purposes  of  the 
other  and  any  confusion  of  them  is  sure  to  lead  to  waste  and  disap- 
pointment. Forests  and  parks  should  supplement  and  complement 
each  other.     Both  are  indispensable. 

Our  National  Parks  are  great  tracts  in  the  far  West  set  aside  by 
the  Federal  Government  because  of  their  uncommon  interest  and 
beauty.  From  the  comparatively  small  area  in  the  Yellowstone, 
proclaimed  by  President  Harrison  in  1891 ,  we  now  have  five  great 
National  Parks,  the  Yellowstone,  the  Yosemite,  General  Grant, 
Sequoia,  and  Mt.  Ranier,  which  include  within  their  boundaries 
more  than  40,000,000  acres.  Because  of  their  immense  size  and  of 
the  interest  of  the  whole  country,  rather  than  of  one  locality  in  their 
preservation,  they  have  become  National  rather  than  State  Parks. 
"The  wildest  health  and  pleasure  grounds,"  says  John  Muir,  "ac- 
cessible and  available  to  tourists  seeking  escape  from  care  and  dust 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

and  early  death,  are  the  parks  and  reservations  of  the  West.  There 
are  five  National  Parks,  the  Yellow^stone,  Yosemite,  General  Grant, 
Sequoia,  and  Mt.  Ranier,  all  within  easy  reach,  a  magnificent  realm 
of  woods,  most  of  which  by  railroads  and  trails  and  open  ridges  is 
also  fairly  accessible,  not  only  to  the  determined  traveller  rejoicing 
m  difficulties,  but  to  those  (may  their  tribe  increase)  who,  not  tired, 
not  sick,  just  naturally  take  wing  every  summer  in  search  of  wild- 
ness."  In  addition  to  these  parks  the  fifty-nine  forests  possessed  by 
the  Government  occupy  more  than  150,000,000  acres, — -an  illus- 
tration of  the  extent  to  which  the  Nation  at  large  believes  in  both 
forests  and  parks. 

Better  known  than  our  National  Parks  are  City  Parks.  Every 
city  worthy  of  the  name  has  them.  They  are  now  recognized  as  a 
necessity  of  city  life.  More  than  any  other  feature  they  contribute 
to  the  health  and  pleasure  of  urban  populations,  and  furnish  the  most 
necessary  and  available  antidote  to  the  artificiality,  confusion  and 
feverishness  of  life  in  cities.  These  parks,  however,  in  order  to 
serve  their  purposes  effectively  must  be  near  the  homes  of  the  people 
and,  on  account  of  the  high  value  of  the  land,  they  are  usually  very 
limited  in  area  and  commonplace  in  topography. 

Between  these  two  classes  of  parks — National  Parks  and  City 
Parks — there  is  a  gap,  a  field  for  profitable  public  action  which  until 
recently  has  been  almost  unoccupied.  There  are  thousands  of 
people  in  every  section  of  the  country  in  need  and  in  search  of  the 

[12] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

wild  and  beautiful  places  of  Nature,  and  in  almost  every  State  of  the 
Union  there  are  places  fitted  to  supply  their  need  and  reward  their 
search.  It  would  seem  like  a  clear  case  of  demand  and  supply. 
Most  of  these  places  are  not  of  such  a  character  as  to  form  National 
Parks,  nor  are  they  so  situated  as  to  serve  the  needs  of  a  single  city. 
The  result  is,  under  our  present  foolish  system,  that  they  are  either 
being  ruthlessly  destroyed  or  are  gradually  drifting  into  private 
hands  for  purely  private  uses. 

Some  States,  it  is  true,  have  appreciated  the  logic  of  this  situation 
before  it  was  altogether  too  late.  Massachusetts,  ever  a  leader  in 
matters  affecting  the  common  welfare,  awoke  to  the  importance  of 
this  matter  nearly  a  score  of  years  ago.  In  1 892  a  body  of  public- 
spirited  men  petitioned  the  legislature  as  follows:  "The  under- 
signed petitioners  respectfully  represent  that  the  seashores,  the  river 
banks,  the  mountain  tops,  and  almost  all  the  finest  parts  of  the 
natural  scenery  of  Massachusetts  are  possessed  by  private  persons, 
whose  private  interests  often  dictate  the  destruction  of  said  scener>' 
or  the  exclusion  of  the  public  from  the  enjoyment  thereof.  In  the 
opinion  of  the  undersigned,  the  scenes  of  natural  beauty  to  which  the 
people  of  the  Commonwealth  are  today  of  right  entitled  to  resort  to 
for  pleasure  and  refreshment  are  both  too  few  in  number  and  too 
small  in  area ;  and,  therefore,  your  petitioners  respectfully  ask  that  an 
inquiry  be  instituted  by  your  honorable  bodies  for  the  purpose  of  as- 
certaining what  action,  if  any,  may  be  advisable  in  the  circum- 

[13] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

stances."  The  inquiry  instituted  as  a  result  of  this  petition  is  full  of 
suggestion  and  warning  to  newer  or  more  sparsely  settled  places. 
The  agent  appointed  to  investigate  possible  public  holdings  on  the 
ocean  shore,  to  quote  his  own  words,  "found  everywhere  recent 
changes  in  the  ownership  of  land,  and  a  movement  of  people  of 
means  from  the  cities  and  the  interior  of  the  country  to  the  shore  re- 
gions of  the  State.  I  found  leagues  and  leagues  together  of  the 
shore  line  to  be  all  private  holdings,  without  the  intervention,  in  these 
long  reaches,  of  a  rod  of  space  on  the  shore  to  which  the  public  has  a 
right  to  go.  I  walked  across  the  domain  of  one  man  who  owns 
about  six  miles  of  shore  line.  I  found  a  great  population  inland 
hedged  away  from  the  beach,  and  all  conditions  pointing  to  a  time, 
not  remote,  when  nobody  can  walk  by  the  ocean  in  Massachusetts 
without  payment  of  a  fee,  as  we  formerly  had  to  pay  for  a  glimpse  of 
Niagara.  I  could  see  that  the  movement  for  more  open  spaces  of 
public  resort — for  the  use  and  enjoyment  of  the  people — has  most 
vital  relations  to  civilization,  and  that  it  has  been  instituted  in  re- 
sponse to  a  pressing  need."  Resulting  from  this  and  similar  move- 
ments Massachusetts  has  already  acquired  large  and  valuable  hold- 
ings, first,  through  direct  action  of  the  State  appropriating  money  for 
the  purchase  of  park  lands ;  secondly,  through  State  appointed  com- 
missions, like  the  Metropolitan  Park  Commission;  and,  thirdly, 
through  the  creation  of  a  Board  entitled  the  Trustees  of  Public 
Reservations.     The  holdings  thus  secured  of  mountain  tops,  lakes, 

[14] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

seashore,  river  banks  and  woodland  ensures  to  the  people  of  the  Bay 
State  for  wholesome  recreation  a  variety  of  well-located  grounds  of 
incalculable  value. 

The  achievements  of  some  other  States  are  equally  encouraging. 
New  York  has  a  notable,  even  if  inadequate,  possession  at  Niagara 
Falls,  one  that  annually  adds  fame  to  the  State;  it  has  a  great  park 
in  the  Adirondack  Mountains;  the  Palisades  of  the  Hudson,  Wat- 
kins  Glen,  Stony  Point,  and  a  large  and  beautiful  tract  bordering 
the  great  gorge  of  the  Genesee  River,  the  munificent  gift  of  William 
Pryor  Letchworth.  When  Governor  Hughes  signed  the  bill  ac- 
cepting Letchworth  Park  he  described  the  gift  as  an  "act  of  generos- 
ity which  fitly  crowns  a  life  of  conspicuous  public  usefulness  and  en- 
titles the  donor  to  the  lasting  regard  of  his  fellow  citizens."  Other 
men  of  wealth  in  other  States  have  become  convinced  of  the  peculiar 
opportunity  that  such  gifts  of  land  afford  for  helping  and  blessing 
their  fellowmen. 

California,  not  content  with  the  great  National  Parks  within  its 
borders,  has  invested  $250,000  in  the  3,800  acre  tract  near  Boulder 
Creek  styled  California  Redwood  Park.  It  combines  unexcelled 
natural  beauty  with  unrestricted  freedom  at  an  expense  within  the 
means  of  all  classes.  President  Jordan  of  Stanford  University 
writes:  "The  California  Redwood  Park  is  a  leaf  from  the  virgin 
forest,  a  sample  of  the  redwoods  as  they  have  been  for  ten  thousand 
years  and  one  which  may  be  preserved  for  all  times.     Besides  this  it 

[15] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

is  a  botanical  garden,  where  the  Wax  Myrtle,  the  California  Nut- 
meg Tree,  the  California  Whortleberry,  the  Clintonia,  the  Oxalis, 
and  all  the  other  plants  which  follow  the  redwoods  may  be  likewise 
saved  for  our  descendants."  Other  progressive  States — Minnesota, 
Michigan,  Kansas,  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey — have  shown 
similar  regard  for  their  resources  and  their  people  by  making  suitable 
reservations.  While  still  other  States,  many  of  them  the  natural 
playgrounds  of  the  Nation — Maine  and  New  Hampshire,  for  ex- 
ample— through  a  lack  of  public  spirit  have  permitted  their  entire 
area  to  pass  into  the  hands  of  private  individuals.  New  Hampshire 
has  no  State  Parks  at  all.  Its  nine  principal  cities  hold  altogether 
less  than  600  acres  in  parks.  And  yet  one  syndicate  has  a  private 
park  near  Concord,  the  State  capital,  of  25,000  acres.  Such  a  situ- 
ation is  a  disgrace  to  any  self-respecting  State  and  a  shirking  of  re- 
sponsibility to  future  generations. 


[16] 


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State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


A  CHANCE  IN  THE  OPEN  FOR  ALL 

"It  seems  to  me  that  thoughtful  men  should  not  be  accused  of  exag- 
gerated fears  when  they  deprecate  the  wealth-mad  rush  and  struggle  of 
American  life  and  the  consequent  neglect  of  out-door  recreation,  with  the 
impairment  of  that  mental  and  physical  vigor  absolutely  essential  to  our 
national  welfare,  and  so  abundantly  promised  to  those  who  gratefully  rec- 
ognize, in  Nature's  adjustment  to  the  wants  of  man,  the  care  of  the  good 
God-  who  'made  and  loveth  all.' 

"  Manifestly,  if  outdoor  recreations  are  important  to  the  individual  and 
to  the  nation,  and  if  there  is  danger  of  their  neglect,  every  instrumentality 
should  be  heartily  encouraged  which  aims  to  create  and  stimulate  their  in- 
dulgence in  every  form." — Grover  Cleveland. 


[17] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


II.  STATE  PARKS  FOR  WISCONSIN 

If  other  States  have  found  it  desirable  and  advantageous  to  have 
State  Parks,  why  should  not  Wisconsin?  Has  the  State  nothing 
worthy  of  preservation?  Is  Wisconsin  too  poor?  Does  it  not  ex- 
pect increase  of  population. 

Has  Wisconsin  nothing  worth  while — a  State  with  an  area  of 
35,000,000  acres;  a  coast  line  of  500  miles,  parts  of  it  rivalling  in 
picturesqueness  and  beauty  the  coast  of  Maine;  with  precipitous  and 
romantic  bluffs  on  the  banks  of  rivers  and  lakes ;  with  an  inland  lake 
much  larger  than  Winnepesaukee  in  New  Hampshire;  with  2,000 
or  more  minor  lakes ;  with  some  still  remaining  illustrations  of  the 
original  heavy  forests  of  oak,  maple  and  hickory,  pine,  hemlock  and 
spruce ;  with  hills,  peaks  and  ridges  comparable  to  the  Berkshires; 
and  with  unmatched  and  unique  river  scenery,  culminating  in  the 
bluffs  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  Dells  of  the  Wisconsin.  Wiscon- 
sin, surrounded  by  prairie  States  and  States  monotonous  in  topog- 
raphy, has  in  its  beautiful  and  refreshing  scenery  and  in  its  invigorat- 
ing climate,  resources  that  it  can  ill  afford  to  neglect. 

Is  Wisconsin  too  poor — a  State  that  has  a  property  valuation  of 
over  $2,478,561,786.00  and  no  bonded  indebtedness;  that  has 
$400,000,000  invested  in  manufacturing;   that  spends  over  a  half 

[18] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

million  dollars  a  year  on  its  normal  schools,  more  than  a  million  on 
its  great  University,  that  disburses  in  all  nearly  $10,000,000  annu- 
ally. No,  the  State  has  ample  wealth  to  supply  any  feature  that  is 
needed  for  the  present  or  the  future. 

Has  Wisconsin  no  future  to  provide  for — a  State  with  a  popula- 
tion of  but  30,000  in  I840„a  million  and  a  half  in  1890,  two  mil- 
lion in  1 900,  and  at  least  two  and  a  half  million  today ;  that  can  sup- 
port, even  with  the  present  system  of  agriculture,  six  and  a  half  mil- 
lion people ;  that  has  the  geographical  position,  the  natural  resources, 
the  climate,  the  enterprise  that  must  inevitably  attract  a  large  popula- 
tion. It  seems  certain  that  the  State  will  win  to  its  borders  even 
more  than  its  share  of  the  natural  and  normal  increase  of  the  country' 
at  large. 

The  question  resolves  itself  into  this:  Is  Wisconsin  going  to  fol- 
low the  example  of  the  more  populous  Eastern  States  and  wait  until 
action  is  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  or  is  it  going  to  learn  from  their 
mistakes?  In  the  investigation  of  1892  it  was  found  that  "Massa- 
chusetts, as  a  whole,  is  shamefully  lacking  in  open  spaces  reserved 
expressly  for  enjoyment  by  the  public.  The  mountain  tops  of  the 
interior,  the  cliffs  and  beaches  of  the  seashore,  and  most  of  the  inter- 
vening scenes  of  special  beauty  are  rapidly  passing  into  the  posses- 
sion of  private  owners,  who  hold  these  places  either  for  their  own 
private  pleasure  or  for  the  profit  which  may  be  reaped  from  fees  col- 
lected from  the  public.     Moreover,  as  population  increases,  the  final 

[19] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

destruction  of  the  finest  remaining  bits  of  scenery  goes  on  more  and 
more  rapidly."  What  is  true  of  Massachusetts  is  true  of  New 
York,  where  the  State  paid  a  milHon  and  a  half  dollars  to  recover  a 
poor  portion  of  the  great  tract  at  Niagara  Falls  which  it  had  formerly 
owned.  The  coast  of  Maine,  the  mountains  of  New  Hampshire 
and  Vermont,  the  natural  treasures  of  other  States — all  enforce  this 
lesson  of  lost  opportunity,  a  failure  to  recognize  and  provide  for  the 
necesssities  of  the  many  as  against  the  privileges  of  the  few.  Strik- 
ing examples  could  be  taken  from  Wisconsin  itself,  in  the  history  of 
Lake  Geneva,  Lake  Oconomowoc,  the  Dells  of  the  Wisconsin,  and 
Devil's  Lake.  While  the  State  of  Wisconsin  is  large,  the  amount 
of  natural  scenery  suited  in  character,  location  and  extent  for  public 
parks  is  relatively  limited  and  the  best  is  apt  to  be  taken  first  by  pri- 
vate individuals.  The  population  is  steadily  increasing;  attractive 
open  spaces  are  as  steadily  decreasing  in  number  and  increasing  in 
value ;  therefore,  unless  action  is  taken  in  time,  there  is  a  grave  dan- 
ger of  what  may  be  called  physical  and  moral  suffocation. 


[20] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


"A  man's  eyes  cannot  be  so  much  occupied  as  they  are  in  large 
cities  by  artificial  things,  or  by  natural  things  seen  under  obviously  artifi- 
cial conditions,  without  a  harmful  effect,  first  on  his  mental  and  nervous 
system  and  ultimately  on  his  entire  constitutional  organization.  . 
Relief  from  this  evil  is  to  be  obtained  through  the  enjoyment  of  pleasing 
rural  scenery." — Frederick  Law  Olmsted. 


(«ll 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


III.  REQUIREMENTS  OF  STATE  PARKS 


State  Parks,  like  other  parks,  have  definite  purposes  to  serve  and 
therefore  should  have  definite  requirements.  Their  main  purpose  is 
to  refresh  and  strengthen  and  renew  tired  people,  to  fit  them  for  the 
common  round  of  daily  life.  Practically  National  Parks  have  a 
similar  purpose,  but  on  account  of  their  limited  number  and  location 
they  are  available  only  to  persons  living  in  certain  sections  or  to  the 
few  people  who  can  afford  the  time  and  money  necessary  for  a  long 
journey.  The  City  Parks  may  be  thought  to  serve  this  purpose  also, 
but  it  is  not  to  any  great  degree.  In  the  first  place,  only  large  cities 
can  afford  large  parks  and  even  then  they  are  too  small,  as  a  rule,  for 
broad  scenic  effects;  secondly,  cities  are  located  for  commercial, 
business  or  transportation  reasons  and  seldom  possess  invigorating 
climate  or  natural  features  of  special  beauty  or  interest, — or,  if  they 
do,  the  demands  of  commerce  are  such,  or  are  thought  to  be,  that  the 
preservation  of  these  features  is  not  considered  practicable.  Apply 
these  statements  to  Wisconsin.  There  would  be  little  justification 
for  establishing  a  National  Park  in  Wisconsin ;  within  the  State  at 
the  present  time  there  is  but  one  city  with  a  population  of  over 
50,000;  the  largest  park  in  the  State  is  only  a  few  hundred  acres  and 
all  the  parks  of  the  State  together  contain  but  little  over  a  thousand 

[22] 


'"'l^ii'j 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

acres.  Therefore,  if  the  people  of  Wisconsin  are  to  have  the  ad- 
vantage of  large  parks — and  who  can  doubt  that  they  are? — they 
cannot  look  successfully  to  the  Nation  or  the  cities  to  provide  them ; 
they  must  come  from  the  State. 

What  are  the  requirements  of  State  Parks?  They  may  be  con- 
veniently summarized  under  five  heads.  ( 1 )  They  should  be 
large ;  otherwise  they  could  not  be  used  by  great  numbers  of  people 
without  destruction  of  the  very  qualities  most  essential  to  their  pur- 
pose. On  account  of  the  influence  of  topographical  features  it  is 
hardly  practicable,  nor  is  it  necessary,  to  fix  an  acreage  for  State 
Parks,  but,  as  a  working  basis,  it  may  be  said  that  it  is  desirable  that 
State  Parks  should  contain  at  least  two  or  three  thousand  acres  and 
five  thousand  are  even  better.  (2)  State  Parks  should  be  access- 
ible— not  to  the  degree  that  City  Parks  are,  but  accessible  by  train  or 
boat  or  vehicle  within  reasonable  time  and  at  reasonable  expense. 
Accessibility,  however,  should  not  be  interpreted  too  narrowly,  nor 
should  it  be  measured  by  present  facilities  alone.  The  establish- 
ment of  a  park  in  one  section  or  another  will  inevitably  lead  to  an  in- 
crease of  travelling  accommodations,  as  will  also  the  mere  lapse  of 
years,  bringing  with  it  an  increased  density  of  population.  (3) 
The  air  and  climate  of  sections  within  which  State  Parks  are  located 
should  be  salubrious,  and  the  situation  healthful.  Especially 
should  the  climate  of  the  summer  months,  the  period  that  most 
people  have  for  vacations,  be  agreeable.     In  the  course  of  years 

[23] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

State  Parks  are  likely  to  be  more  or  less  visited  at  all  seasons,  as  Na- 
ture offers  a  reward  in  every  month  to  her  visitors.  But  the  empha- 
sis for  the  present  must  fall  on  the  mid-summer  season  with  some  con- 
sideration of  spring  and  autumn.  (4)  The  property  for  State 
Parks  should  be  reasonable  in  cost.  Cities  average  about  a  thou- 
sand dollars  an  acre  for  park  land,  but  hope  for  a  comprehensive  sys- 
tem of  State  Parks  must  be  founded  on  a  much  lower  cost,  and  ex- 
cept in  the  case  of  densely  populated  States,  States  that  have  waited 
too  long  before  taking  action,  there  is  every  prospect  of  securing  the 
most  suitable  and  fit  land  at  almost  nominal  rates.  The  parks  ac- 
quired by  States  so  far  have  not  averaged  in  cost  much  more  than 
twenty-five  dollars  an  acre,  I  believe.  Seldom  would  a  State  be 
justified  in  paying  an  average  of  over  a  hundred  dollars  an  acre  for  a 
tract  of  any  considerable  size.  Not  only  should  the  first  cost  be  low 
but  the  property  should  be  of  such  a  character  as  to  require  relatively 
small  expenditures  for  construction  and  maintenance.  It  should  be 
a  "natural"  park,  one  of  such  intrinsic  beauty  as  to  require  little  out- 
lay for  improvements  (except  for  roads,  paths  and  other  features 
necessary  to  its  use)  and  up-keep.  (5)  Finally,  the  site  for  a 
State  Park  should,  above  all,  have  a  decidedly  uncommon  charm 
and  beauty,  a  distinction  among  landscapes,  an  irresistible  appeal  to 
the  Nature  lover.  Here  there  should  be  no  room  for  doubt,  for  fail- 
ure in  this  point  means  complete  failure ;  and  on  no  other  point,  nor 
on  all  other  points  together,  can  justification  rest.     State  Parks  must 

[24] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

be  unmistakably  beautiful ;  they  must  present  to  the  enjoyment  of  all 
some  consistent,  unspoiled  type  of  landscape;  they  must  offer  freely 
the  glory  of  lake  or  mountain,  the  picturesqueness  of  shore  or  bluff, 
the  beauty  of  hill  and  vale. 

In  these  five  points  we  have  a  brief  summary  of  the  general  re- 
quirements of  State  Parks  for  such  a  commonwealth  as  Wisconsin. 
They  should  be  kept  constantly  in  mind  in  the  attempt  to  estimate  the 
value  of  the  sites  now  under  consideration  or  other  sites  that  may  be 
considered  later. 


[25] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


"We  live  for  the  most  part  in  a  very  iron  mask  of  forms.  Our  daily 
ways  are  at  bottom  so  joyless,  so  trite,  so  compulsory,  that  we  must  be  free 
and  simple  sometimes,  or  we  break.  Our  present  world  is  a  world  of  re- 
markable civilization,  and  of  very  superior  virtue,  but  it  is  not  very  natural 
and  not  very  happy.  We  need  yet  some  snatches  of  the  life  of  youth — to 
be  for  a  season  simply  happy  and  simply  healthy.  We  need  to  draw 
sometimes  great  drafts  of  simplicity  and  beauty.  We  need  sometimes  that 
poetry  should  not  be  droned  into  our  ears,  but  flashed  into  our  senses. 
And  man,  with  all  his  knowledge  and  his  pride,  needs  sometimes  to  know 
nothing  and  to  feel  nothing,  but  that  he  is  a  marvellous  atom  in  a  marvel- 
lous world." — Frederic  Harrison. 


[26] 


OF  THE 

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State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


IV.  AVAILABLE  SITES 


At  the  invitation  of  the  State  Park  Board  I  have  visited  the  Dells 
of  the  Wisconsin  River  at  Kilbourn,  Devil's  Lake  near  Baraboo, 
various  properties  in  Door  County  and  the  bluff  land  at  the  conflu- 
ence of  the  Mississippi  and  Wisconsin  Rivers  in  Grant  County. 

In  an  attempt  to  outline  something  like  a  well-balanced  system  of 
State  Parks  for  Wisconsin  it  should  be  kept  in  mind  that  the  prin- 
ciple has  already  been  accepted  and  a  start  already  made  in  the  In- 
terstate Park  of  the  Dalles  of  the  St.  Croix.  More  than  a  decade 
ago,  by  joint  action  of  the  legislatures  of  Wisconsin  and  Minnesota, 
a  park  property  near  Taylors  Falls,  in  many  respects  ideal,  was  se- 
cured and  set  aside  as  an  Interstate  Park.  No  description  of  this 
reservation  is  here  called  for,  but  it  is  not  amiss  to  say  that,  notwith- 
standing Wisconsin's  neglect  of  the  property,  its  inadequate  area 
and  illogical  boundaries,  it  has  been  an  important  factor  in  attracting 
favorable  public  attention  to  the  State  and  its  resources. 

If  it  were  right  and  good  for  the  State  of  Wisconsin  to  secure  the 
Dalles  of  the  St.  Croix,  how  much  more  reason  there  was  for  taking 
possession  of  the  Dells  of  the  Wisconsin.  At  the  time  the  Dalles  of 
the  St.  Croix  were  secured,  the  Dells  of  the  Wisconsin  were  equally 

[27] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

available,  far  more  accessible  to  Wisconsin's  population,  and  met  in 
a  more  marked  degree  the  highest  and  most  exacting  requirements  of 
State  Parks.  Indeed,  a  vote  either  of  the  people  at  large  or  of  park 
experts  could  hardly  fail  to  pronounce  in  favor  of  the  Dells,  as  Wis- 
consin's most  characteristic  and  precious  possession  in  the  form  of 
natural  scenery.  They  are  unique.  For  picturesqueness,  roman- 
tic scenery,  for  alternative  suggestions  of  mystery  and  majesty,  the 
Wisconsin  River  scenery  at  the  Dells  is  seldom  surpassed.  The 
features  of  interest  are  numerous  and  varied — The  Narrows,  Ro- 
mance Cliff,  Stand  Rock,  The  Navy  Yard,  these  and  many  other 
rock  features,  richly  clothed  in  verdure,  surprise  and  charm  the  vis- 
itor at  every  turn  of  the  river.  But  after  all  these  are  details  and  do 
not  constitute  the  main  contribution  to  our  joy  and  refreshment — it  is 
the  total  scene,  the  broad  appeal  of  out-door  beauty  to  our  emotions, 
the  quickening  of  our  whole  life  as  we  move  silently  through  this 
wonderland.  But  this  is  what  the  Dells  are  today.  What  they 
will  be  when  the  dam  now  under  construction  is  completed,  when 
the  water  is  raised  permanently  eighteen  to  twenty  feet  above  the 
present  level,  it  is  not  easy  to  say.  Will  there  be  sufficient  beauty 
and  interest  remaining  to  warrant  the  State  in  making  it  one  of  the 
permanent  pleasure  grounds  of  the  people?  It  is  hard  to  answer 
this  question  with  confidence  and,  in  view  of  the  uncertainty  as  to 
what  will  remain,  as  well  as  its  cost,  it  would  probably  be  wiser  to 
postpone  definite  action  on  the  Dells,  taking  steps,  however,  to  pre- 

[88] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

vent  further  damage.  When  the  Wisconsin  Power  Company  fin- 
ishes its  dam  at  Kilboum  and  the  level  of  the  w^ater  is  raised,  the 
present  generation  in  Wisconsin,  acting  through  the  Legislature,  will 
have  covered  forever  more  of  the  essential  natural  beauty  of  the 
State  than  future  generations  can  re-create.  Commercial  returns  to 
the  whole  people  may  perhaps  justify  this  irretrievable  loss.  If  not, 
somewhere  rests  a  grave  responsibility. 

Devil's  Lake  in  Sauk  County  is,  as  everyone  knows,  a  most  ac- 
cessible and  popular  resort,  with  a  great  wild  forest  around  it,  and 
fully  sufficient  in  size  for  State  Park  purposes.  The  climate  in  sum- 
mer is  healthful,  if  not  invigorating.  In  beauty — barring  the  rav- 
ages of  the  railroad,  the  quarries,  and  the  scars  of  commonplace  sum- 
mer cottages — Devil's  Lake  meets  all  the  requirements  of  a  State 
Park.  The  lake  itself,  half  a  mile  wide  and  more  than  a  mile  in 
length,  is  a  gem,  a  characteristic  example  of  Wisconsin's  natural  pos- 
sessions. The  bluffs  rise  impressively  from  the  shores  of  the  lake 
and  afford  broad  and  beautiful  views  of  the  Baraboo  valley,  the  re- 
freshing and  soul-renewing  value  of  which  cannot  easily  be  over-es- 
timated. The  romantic  glens,  the  rock-walled  and  wooded  hol- 
lows, the  secluded  creeks  in  little  valleys,  all  make  their  contribution 
to  the  pleasure  of  the  visitor.  Devil's  Lake  possesses,  too,  scientific 
interest — geological,  archaeological,  botanical — that  can  scarcely  be 
duplicated  in  Wisconsin.  Indeed,  no  long  description  of  Devil's 
Lake  is  necessary,  for  it  is  well  known  how  eminently  fitted  it  is  to 

[29] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

serve  forever  all  the  fine  aims  and  ends  of  State  Parks.  The  forests 
and  most  of  the  bluffs,  with  their  outcropping  rock,  can  be  secured 
at  reasonable  rates  and  with  little  difficulty. 

The  total  area  mapped  out  by  the  first  State  Park  Commission  as 
representing  the  property  desirable  for  the  State  to  acquire,  was 
5,500  acres,  which  it  has  been  roughly  estimated  could  not  be  se- 
cured for  less  than  $250,000.  Of  this  area  5,000  acres  could  be 
had  for  about  $  1 00,000,  and  the  other  500  acres  would  cost  approx- 
imately $1 50,000.  Some  of  this  it  would  be  necessary  to  acquire, 
but  a  large  portion  is  not  indispensable.  The  present  situation  at 
Devil's  Lake,  as  at  the  Dells,  cannot  fail  to  impress  the  members  of 
the  State  Legislature  with  the  necessity  for  early  action  in  the  acqui- 
sition of  lands  for  State  Parks. 

A  visit  to  Door  County  cannot  fail  to  be  memorable.  Whether 
the  belief  of  its  residents  that  Door  County  is  "the  Paradise  of  Wis- 
consin" is  true  or  not,  there  can  be  no  question  that  the  peninsula, 
whose  shores  are  washed  on  one  side  by  Lake  Michigan  and  on  the 
other  by  the  waters  of  historical  Green  Bay,  is  pre-eminently  quali- 
fied for  selection  as  a  State  Park.  The  members  of  the  State  Park 
Board,  its  advisors,  the  Govemor  of  the  State,  and  other  representa- 
tive citizens  have  made  several  visits  to  Door  County,  spending  days 
in  the  consideration  of  its  advantages,  testing  critically  its  claims  for 
consideration.  So  far  as  I  know,  the  opinion  is  unanimous  that  here 
at  least,  if  nowhere  else  in  Wisconsin,  is  a  tract  that  can  be  selected 

[30] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

with  confidence  and  that  can  be  had  upon  astonishingly  reasonable 
terms. 

The  area  available  is  not  limited.  But  it  is  the  opinion  of  the 
State  Park  Board  that  the  finely  situated  peninsula  between 
Ephraim  and  Fish  Creek  and  north  of  the  diagonal  road  (the  map 
will  show  the  exact  boundaries) ,  including  some  3,800  acres,  more 
than  eight  miles  of  shore  line  with  a  number  of  deep  water  harbors, 
will  constitute  an  adequate  and  unified  State  Park.  In  this  view  I 
concur.  Such  a  tract  would  cost,  it  is  estimated,  not  more  than 
$75,000,  an  average  of  less  than  $20  an  acre  (options  have  already 
been  obtained  for  2,200  acres  for  $35,000).  Even  now  Door 
County  is  reasonably  accessible,  judged  by  the  standards  required 
for  State  Parks.  By  rail  and  stage,  by  rail  and  boat,  or  directly  by 
boat,  the  pleasantest  way  in  summer.  Fish  Creek  and  all  the  prop- 
erty under  consideration  can  be  conveniently  and  inexpensively 
reached.  Beyond  all  question  the  climate  is  healthful,  invigorating 
and  tonic,  quickly  bracing  tired  bodies  and  nerves.  Door  County  is 
not  an  altogether  unknown  resort.  Discriminating  people,  number- 
ing now  at  least  a  thousand  a  year,  have  discovered  its  charms  and 
become  familiar  with  its  attractions.  But  fortunately  for  the  State 
and  for  the  people  at  large,  this  movement  to  occupy  Door  County 
with  private  summer  places  has  not  yet  assumed  large  proportions. 
Finally — taking  the  last  point  in  the  requirements  for  State  parks — 
Door  County  has  unmistakable  and  not  easily  destroyed  landscape 

[31] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

beauty.  It  is  wild  and  as  yet  unspoiled,  with  alternating  interests 
of  woodland  and  cliff,  bay  and  land.  Reminding  one  constantly  of 
the  coast  of  Maine,  the  shore  with  its  many  graceful  indentations  is 
a  never-ending  delight.  It  sweeps  from  point  to  point,  here  a  beach 
of  fine  sand,  there  of  gravel,  then,  in  contrast,  precipitous  limestone 
bluffs,  rising  to  a  height  of  a  hundred  feet  or  more  and  covered  with 
a  heavy  growth  of  native  trees  and  shrubs,  mostly  evergreen.  The 
vegetation  is  rich  and  varied.  Extensive  forests  of  pine,  cedar,  bal- 
sam, maple,  basswood  and  birch,  covering  large  tracts,  with  every 
now  and  then  a  pleasant  opening  in  the  more  fertile,  level  land. 
Birds  are  numerous,  as  might  be  expected,  and  wild  flowers  abound. 
It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  the  broad  beauty  of  the  scenery  of 
this  section  is  not  surpassed  in  Wisconsin.  Indeed,  one  of  the  un- 
deniable claims  of  Door  County  to  selection  is  that  this  type  of  scen- 
ery does  not  exist  elsewhere  in  the  State.  Almost  at  each  step  on 
the  land,  each  boat's  length  on  the  water,  a  new  vista  is  opened,  a 
new  composition  is  afforded.  To  add  even  greater  interest  to  these 
scenes  we  have  the  little  islands — Strawberry,  Horseshoe,  etc. — 
stretching  along  the  shore — which,  it  is  hoped,  will  form  a  part  of 
the  State's  possessions.  With  a  temperature  always  moderate,  the 
purest  of  air  laden  with  the  fragrance  of  balsam  and  pine,  with  unex- 
celled facilities  for  sailing,  boating,  fishing,  with  already  a  hundred 
miles  of  fine  country  roads  sweeping  over  hill  and  dale,  this  Door 
County  region  under  State  control  might  easily  become  a  famous 

[32] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

pleasure  resort  of  the  highest  order.  The  Michigan  State  Park  at 
Mackinac  Island  is  not  one  whit  more  attractive  than  the  proposed 
Door  County  park  might  easily  be.  Yet  the  Mackinac  Island  Park, 
comprising  but  a  thousand  acres,  is  now  valued  at  two  million  dollars 
and  is  visited  annually  by  two  hundred  thousand  persons.  Would 
it  not  be  worth  while  for  Wisconsin  to  have  a  State  Park  with  such 
a  record  and  to  secure  such  a  tangible  return? 

In  the  southwestern  corner  of  the  State,  near  the  old  historic  city 
of  Prairie  du  Chien,  is  the  site  of  the  proposed  Grant  County  State 
Park  on  the  Mississippi  River.  It  is  situated  close  to  Wyalusing, 
south  of  the  Wisconsin  River  and  east  of  the  Mississippi.  Most  of 
the  property  is  on  a  ridge  five  hundred  feet  above  the  river.  It  appears 
to  be  the  best  Wisconsin  site  on  the  Mississippi  for  park  purposes  be- 
cause of  its  large  and  well  preserved  groves  of  native  trees  and  be- 
cause the  land  required  to  form  an  accessible  park  is  practically  in  the 
possession  of  one  man.  Mr.  Robert  Glenn,  the  owner  of  the  prop- 
erty, has  held  it  intact  for  years  in  the  firm  belief  that  it  would  some 
day  become  a  public  park.  He  is  unselfishly  interested  in  the  project 
and  has  shown  himself  ready  to  cooperate  with  the  Board.  The 
total  area  is  about  2,720  acres,  1 ,720  of  high  land  on  the  ridge  and 
about  1 ,000  west  of  the  railroad  tracks,  practically  level  with  the 
river.  The  high  land  alone  could  be  bought  for  about  $43,000 — 
an  average  of  $25  an  acre ;  the  low  land  for  less — substantially  the 

[33] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

price  of  the  timber.    This  proposed  Mississippi  River  reservation  is 
very  accessible,  being  only  three  hours  from  Madison  on  the  Chi- 
cago, Milwaukee  and  St.  Paul  Railroad,  and  of  course  easily 
reached  from  many  points  by  boat.    While  the  climate  may  not  be 
as  invigorating  as  that  of  Door  County,  it  would  be  a  refreshing  re- 
treat to  people  in  that  section  of  Wisconsin  and  to  tourists  from  more 
southern  States.    Judged  by  the  point  of  scenery  alone  it  is  equal  to 
any  site  under  consideration.    It  would  be  a  surprise  to  most  people 
to  wander  through  its  exquisitely  beautiful  coulees  and  grottoes  or  to 
stand  upon  its  heights  and  view  the  broad  island-dotted,  majestic 
scenery  of  the  "Father  of  Waters."    The  vegetation  equals  that  of 
Door  County  in  interest,  all  the  trees  native  to  the  section  being  found 
with  a  rich  variety  of  shrubs  and  wild  flowers.    The  scientific  inter- 
est of  Devil's  Lake  is  also  at  Wyalusing,  and  here,  writes  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  are  "some  of  the 
most  extensive  and  interesting  mound  systems  of  the  State."    The 
Mississippi  River  is  being  rediscovered  in  our  own  day,  not  only  its 
opportunities  for  commerce  but  also  its  peculiar  beauty.    The  time 
is  coming  when  a  series  of  interesting  cities  and  beautiful  parks  will 
attract  the  tourist  to  make  a  trip  up  or  down  the  river.    When  that 
day  comes,  it  will  be  to  the  advantage  of  Wisconsin  to  be  properly 
represented.    Is  there  any  opportunity  comparable  to  that  afforded 
by  Wyalusing,  or,  what  has  been  already  suggestively  termed,  Mar- 
quette Park? 

[34] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

These  four  sites— The  Dells,  Devil's  Lake,  Eagle's  Bluff  in 
Door  County,  and  the  Glenn  property  on  the  Mississippi — are  not 
the  only  ones  in  Wisconsin  suitable  for  State  Parks.  Other  sites, 
such  as  Thunder  Mountain,  Blue  Mounds  and  Platte  Mounds,  are 
all  worthy  of  future  inspection.  But  the  four  selected  by  the  Sta.e 
Park  Board  and  herein  described  are  peculiarly  qualified  for  im- 
mediate consideration  and  action. 


tw] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


"A  nobler  want  of  man  is  served  by  nature,  namely,  the  love  of 
Beauty.  .  .  .  To  the  body  and  mind  which  have  been  cramped  by 
noxious  work  or  company,  nature  is  medicinal  and  restores  their  tone. 
The  tradesman,  the  attorney  comes  out  of  the  din  and  craft  of  the  street, 
and  sees  the  sky  and  the  woo  ds,  and  is  a  man  again.  In  their  eternal 
calm,  he  finds  himself  The  health  of  the  eye  seems  to  demand  a  horizon. 
We  are  never  tired,  so  long  as  we  can  see  far  enough.  .  .  .  Beauty  is 
the  mark  God  sets  upon  virtue.  Every  natural  action  is  graceful.  Every 
heroic  act  is  also  decent,  and  causes  the  place  and  the  bystanders  to  shine. 
We  are  taught  by  great  actions  that  the  universe  is  the  property  of  every 
individual  in  it." — Ralph  Waldo  Emerson. 


[36] 


"^'    OF   THE 

OF 


INK  STAND  AND  SUGAR   BOWL— DELLS  Ul<'  THE   WISCONSLM 


l,O\V10R  JAWS— DELLS   OP  THE  WISCONSIN 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


V.  RECOMMENDATIONS 


Briefly  summarized  the  recommendations  of  this  report  are  as  fol- 
lows: 

I.  To  authorize  the  State  Park  Board  to  secure  as  soon  as  may  be 
the  refusal  of  such  property  as  would  constitute  the  most  attractive 
reservation  in  connection  with  the  Dells  of  the  Wisconsin,  and  to  do 
all  that  is  possible  to  check  any  further  action  that  would  impair  the 
beauty  of  the  Dells  for  park  purposes. 

II.  To  empower  the  State  Park  Board  to  make  an  official  inves- 
tigation of  the  Devil's  Lake  region  with  authority  to  acquire  all  the 
wild  land  up  to,  say,  5,000  acres,  at  a  rate  not  to  exceed  an  average 
of  $25  an  acre,  and  as  much  of  the  level  land  around  the  lake  as  pos- 
sible at  a  rate  not  to  exceed  $  1 00  an  acre,  provided  that  the  total 
area  available  on  these  terms  will,  in  the  judgment  of  the  State  Park 
Board  and  its  landscape  adviser,  form  a  complete  and  valuable  park. 
In  case  of  favorable  action  at  Devil's  Lake,  the  State  should  also  ob- 
tain through  condemnation  proceedings  rights  and  easements  over 
the  property  not  purchased,  as  has  been  done  by  the  national  govern- 
ment in  the  military  parks  of  Chickamauga  and  Shiloh,  so  as  to  pre- 
vent the  establishment  of  disfiguring  and  offensive  industries,  to  pro- 
tect the  trees  from  destruction,  and  thus  insure  success  to  the  State's 
action. 

[37] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

III.  To  authorize  the  State  Park  Board  to  acquire  the  lands  in 
Door  County  near  Fish  Creek,  now  under  consideration,  on  the  gen- 
eral terms  named  in  this  report. 

IV.  To  authorize  the  State  Park  Board  to  acquire  the  lands  in 
Grant  County  near  Wyalusing,  as  outlined,  on  the  general  terms 
quoted  in  this  report. 

These  four  parks  and  others  that  may  be  obtained  later  by  public 
purchase  or  private  gift — for  such  gifts  can  reasonably  be  expected — 
should  ultimately  be  connected  by  great  State  roads  or  parkways, 
binding  the  State  lands  into  a  system.  Such  roads  are  being  rapidly 
built  on  a  large  scale  by  other  States  and  Wisconsin  cannot  afford  to 
lag  behind  in  work  so  closely  related  to  progress  and  public  welfare. 
A  State  road  of  such  a  character  as  to  provide  adequately  for  auto- 
mobile travel  from,  say.  Green  Bay  to  Prairie  du  Chien,  following 
the  historic  route  along  the  Fox  and  Wisconsin  Rivers;  another  diag- 
onal connecting  St.  Paul  and  Minneapolis  with  Milwaukee  and 
Chicago,  and  a  third  road  along  the  Wisconsin  shores  of  Lake  Mich- 
igan and  Lake  Superior,  would  prove  an  investment,  the  return  from 
which  would  leave  the  State  no  room  for  regret. 

The  issue  appears  plain.  Is  Wisconsin  going  to  look  upon  its  bay 
and  lake  shores,  its  rivers  and  bluffs,  its  dells,  its  inland  lakes,  its  for- 
ests, as  natural  resources  to  be  conserved  and  some  portion  at  least 
acquired  and  held  for  the  benefit  of  all  the  people — both  for  present 
and  future  generations?    Is  the  State  to  display  foresight  and  act  in 

[38] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

time  in  this  important  matter,  recognizing  and  providing  for  the  in- 
crease of  population  and  steadfastly  relying  upon  the  increase  of 
wealth. 

In  conclusion  the  specific  justification  of  State  Parks  for  Wiscon- 
sin may  be  summed  up  as  follows:  ( 1 )  They  would,  in  common 
with  the  forest  reservations,  the  great  economic  value  of  which  is  now 
unquestioned,  preserve  and  protect  just  so  much  more  of  the  wood- 
land of  the  State  and  the  stream  flow  dependent  upon  it.  (2)  They 
would  provide  the  best  method  of  preserving  places  of  historical  and 
scientific  interest.  (3)  They  would  secure  a  necessity  of  modem 
life  before  it  is  too  late.  The  Earl  of  Kenmare  owns  all  of  the  lakes 
of  Killamey,  all  of  the  land  that  surrounds  them,  all  of  the  islands 
of  or  in  the  same,  the  fisheries  of  said  lakes,  and  all  the  mountains 
round  about,  comprising  in  all  a  million  acres.  Wisconsin  fortun- 
ately has  nothing  to  parallel  such  private  ownership  as  this,  but  Lake 
Geneva,  the  Oconomowoc- Waukesha  Lake  District,  and  other 
places  of  peculiar  beauty  are  rapidly  passing  into  exclusive  private 
use  and  the  time  for  action  in  Wisconsin  has  arrived.  It  is  already 
too  late  in  many  of  the  Eastern  States.  The  agent  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Trustees  of  Public  Reservations,  earlier  referred  to,  describ- 
ing a  visit  to  Gloucester,  says:  "There  is  no  public  holding  along 
this  very  attractive  shore  and  the  public  has  no  right  whatever  even 
to  walk  by  the  sea  here.  I  spent  a  summer  at  East  Gloucester  twen- 
ty-five years  ago,  and  where  I  passed  weeks  in  solitude  on  the  shore, 

[39] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

there  are  now  long  streets  of  costly  houses."    Wisconsin  should  no 
longer  delay.    Expenditures  for  State  lands  do  not  represent  an  ex- 
pense in  the  ordinary  sense  but  an  investment,  one  that  will  increase 
in  value  and  yield  even  larger  returns  to  succeeding  generations. 
(4)   State  Parks  would  give  an  economic  return  from  tourists  and 
visitors.    Providing  for  tourist  travel  has  become  a  large  and  impor- 
tant business  and  it  is  steadily  increasing.    In  a  single  State  like  New 
Hampshire  it  exceeds  $10,000,000  a  year.    The  returns  at  Mack- 
inac Island  have  already  been  referred  to.    At  the  Dells  of  the  Wis- 
consin tourists  spent  $50,000  in  1 905  and  the  Vice-President  of  the 
Chicago  &  Northwestern  Railway  Company  has  written  that  the 
tourist  travel  into  Wisconsin  constitutes  now  "a  valuable  traffic  and 
is  susceptible  to  a  very  large  increase."    No  further  argument  should 
be  necessary  on  the  business  side,  and  in  the  case  of  a  relatively 
sparsely  settled  State  with  great  and  undeveloped  resources,  it  should 
be  kept  in  mind  that  tourists  often  become  permanent  settlers.     (5) 
State  Parks  are  the  only  means  of  preserving,  protecting  and  appro- 
priately improving  places  of  uncommon  and  characteristic  beauty. 
Even  forest  reservations — useful  and  indispensable  as  they  are — 
will  not  answer  this  purpose.    Land  for  forests  is  selected  on  a  differ- 
ent principle  and  is  afterwards  developed  and  maintained  in  a  man- 
ner radically  different  from  that  called  for  by  parks.     (6)    Finally, 
these  parks  would  make,  as  no  other  agency  can,  adequate  and  per- 
manent provision  for  wholesome  out-door  recreation  and  pleasure. 

[40] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

If  it  is  right  for  the  State  of  Wisconsin  to  spend  a  million  and  a  quar- 
ter dollars  on  charitable  and  penal  institutions,  as  it  did  in  1908, 
made  necessary  in  part  at  least  by  unfavorable  physical  and  social 
conditions,  is  it  not  wise  and  good  to  spend  something  on  preventive 
measures  which  would  make  such  institutions  less  necessary?  Who 
questions  nowadays  that  simple  recreation  in  the  open  air  amid  beau- 
tiful natural  surroundings  contributes  to  physical  and  moral  health, 
to  a  saner  and  happier  life?  These  parks  are  the  only  security  that 
the  future  holds  out  for  people  of  small  means.  In  them  worn-out 
workers  of  the  family  and  the  little  children  could  camp  as  they  do 
in  the  Interstate  Park  of  the  Hudson  Palisades.  "A  mere  autumn 
walk  on  a  wooded  hillside,"  writes  Frederic  Harrison,  "nourishes 
brain,  spirit,  and  body  at  once ;  and  opens  up  to  us  from  all  sources 
together  new  well-springs  of  life." 

Here  are  six  sound  reasons  for  establishing  a  series  of  State  Parks 
in  Wisconsin,  the  nucleus  of  a  future  great  system  covering  the  en- 
tire State.  Suppose  they  cost  three  or  four  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars. Could  not  Wisconsin  afford  to  make  the  investment  and  would 
the  State  not  find  them  worth  more  than  their  cost?  "Sixty  years 
ago,"  says  Professor  R.  G.  Thwaites  in  a  volume  just  issued,  "when 
Wisconsin  entered  the  Union,  it  was  relatively  a  crude  community. 
It  has  slowly  but  surely  advanced  to  the  front  rank  of  trans- Appal- 
achian States.  Fertile,  healthful,  and  beautiful,  with  vast  natural 
resources  as  yet  but  slightly  drawn  upon,  it  has  come  to  be  recognized 

[41] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

as  among  the  most  energetic,  enterprising  and  prosperous  of  Ameri- 
can commonwealths — perhaps  most  markedly  enterprising  in  mat- 
ters of  popular  education  and  the  science  of  government.  Much  of 
its  material  success  is  owing  to  favorable  geographical  position,  and 
to  abundant  products  of  earth  and  water;  but  quite  as  great  is  the  in- 
tellectual debt  that  Wisconsin  owes  to  her  cosmopolitan  population 
that  has  brought  to  her  service  the  best  of  many  lands.  Both  intel- 
lectually and  materially,  she  faces  none  but  pleasant  prospects." 
How  true  this  picture  is,  how  encouraging,  and  how  closely  it  bears 
upon  the  present  significant  movement  for  State  Parks,  the  latest  il- 
lustration of  Wisconsin's  foresight,  enterprise  and  democracy. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

John  Nolen, 
Landscape  Architect. 


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APPENDIX 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


LETTERS  RELATING  TO  STATE  PARKS 


Letter  of  President  Eliot  of  Harvard 

ON 

State  Parks  for  Wisconsin 

My  Dear  Sir: — Massachusetts  is  acquiring  public  reservations  in 
three  ways.  First,  by  the  direct  action  of  the  state  appropriating 
money  for  the  purchase  of  wooded  hills  to  be  preserved  for  public 
parks.  Secondly,  through  the  action  of  state  appointed  commissions, 
like  the  Metropolitan  Water  Board  and  the  Metropolitan  Park 
Commission,  securing  large  areas  for  public  use,  which  are  paid  for 
by  assessments  on  the  portion  of  the  state  which  is  benefited.  In  this 
way  the  Metropolitan  Parks  and  Parkways  around  Boston  have 
been  created  and  large  reservations  have  been  secured  on  the  water- 
shed of  the  Metropolitan  Water  Supply.  Thirdly,  by  creating  a 
board  called  the  Trustees  of  Public  Reservations,  which  holds  reser- 
vations in  various  parts  of  the  state,  and  also  funds  to  maintain  these 
reservations  in  good  order.  These  reservations  and  the  funds  which 
go  with  them  are  gifts  from  private  persons;  but  all  the  reservations  in 
the  hands  of  the  trustees  are  for  public  use.  The  Board  has  been  in 
existence  fourteen  years,  and  it  has  acquired  a  variety  of  beautiful 

[4«] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

holdings,  including  Monument  Mountain  in  Berkshire  County,  an 
admirable  tract  at  Woods  Hole,  a  hill  on  Cape  Ann  which  com- 
mands a  superb  prospect,  and  several  spots  of  peculiar  beauty  like  the 
so-called  "gates"  of  the  Charles  River  and  the  Virginia  Wood  in 
Middlesex  Fells. 

These  three  modes  have  been  used  in  Massachusetts  for  some 
years  and  all  three  have  proved  to  be  good.  The  public  parks  se- 
cured by  the  Metropolitan  Park  Commission  have  great  variety,  in- 
cluding sea-breezes,  thousands  of  acres  of  forest,  ponds  or  lakes,  or- 
namented parkways,  and  both  banks  of  the  Charles  for  many  miles. 

Your  problem  in  Wisconsin  is  of  course  a  very  different  one,  and 
yet  the  principles  on  which  Massachusetts  has  proceeded  undoubt- 
edly apply  to  Wisconsin.  The  results  will  be  similar  in  Wisconsin. 
Chief  among  them  are  the  preservation  of  forests,  and  therefore  of 
continuous  water  supplies ;  the  protection  of  spots  of  peculiar  beauty, 
and  of  places  which  possess  interesting  historical  associations;  and 
the  permanent  provision  of  means  of  wholesome  public  enjoyment. 

The  sooner  these  results  are  secured  by  the  state  of  Wisconsin,  the 
better  for  all  concemed. 

Very  truly  yours, 

Charles  W.  Eliot. 


[4»] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


American  Civic  Association 
For  a  Better  and  More  Beautiful  America. 

Office  of  the  President, 
Harrisburg,  Pa.,  January  1 ,  1 909. 

Dear  Mr.  Nolen: — Abraham  Lincoln  in  certain  recently  found 
notes  for  a  lecture  on  Niagara  Falls,  prepared  in  July,  1 850,  said : 
"The  mere  physical  fact  of  Niagara  Falls  is  a  very  small  part  of  the 
world's  wonder.  Its  power  to  excite  reflection  and  emotion  is  its 
great  charm."  The  wise  Lincoln  struck  the  keynote  in  this  state- 
ment, and  I  believe  that  the  state  which  can  provide  at  any  reasonable 
expense  locations  which  will  serve  "to  excite  reflection  and  emotion" 
in  its  citizens  is  doing  those  citizens  a  greater  service  than  in  providing 
institutions  to  take  care  of  the  disorders  which  follow  when  there  is 
not  opportunity  for  the  over-worked  or  over-wrought  human  being  to 
enjoy  either  reflection  or  proper  emotion. 

States,  too,  can  well  set  aside  great  areas  for  their  influence  on  the 
healthfulness  of  the  community  as  a  whole.  The  state  of  Pennsyl- 
vania is  wisely  so  treating  large  portions  of  its  forest  areas,  and  it  is 
recognized  as  a  proper  expenditure  of  state  funds  to  provide  a  million 
dollars  for  the  creation  of  state  sanatoria,  to  help  in  the  treatment  of 
lung  diseases. 

[«] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

When  it  shall  be  found  that  the  influence  of  uncommon  and  char- 
acteristic natural  beauty  is  other  than  wholesome,  healthful  and  re- 
creating to  the  people,  then  it  will  be  time  enough  for  economists  to 
assert  that  money  had  better  be  spent  on  hospitals,  reformatories  and 
penitentiaries  instead  of  for  that  which  makes  those  institutions,  be- 
neficent as  they  are,  less  populous.  Meanwhile,  no  man  who  be- 
lieves the  object  of  the  government  to  be  that  of  providing  for  the 
happiness  of  the  governed  can  successfully  maintain  that  it  is  not 
proper  for  a  state  to  guard  the  health  and  the  happiness  of  its  citizens, 
as  well  as  to  attempt  to  restore  that  health  and  happiness  which  have 
been  lost  in  the  work  of  the  world. 

Yours  truly, 

J.  Horace  McFarland, 

President. 
To  Mr.  John  Nolen, 

1 382  Harvard  Square, 
Cambridge,  Mass. 


[48] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


Letter  from  Jacob  A.  Riis 

Grand  Junction,  Colo.,  January  6,  1 909. 

My  Dear  Mr.  Nolen: —  .  .  .  In  general  I  am  for  parks,  al- 
ways, as  in  the  line  of  human  advancement.  But  whether  in  any 
specific  instance  it  is  best  for  the  state,  or  the  city,  to  provide  the  park, 
is  a  question  I  will  leave  to  others  to  decide.  Anything  that  shows 
the  government,  whether  state,  nation  or  municipality,  to  be  aroused 
to  the  needs  which  parks  and  people's  playgrounds  represent  in  the 
people's  life,  I  hail  as  a  long  step  forward.    .    .    . 

Faithfully  yours, 

Jacob  A.  Riis. 


i«] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

Metropolitan  Improvements  Commission, 

20  Beacon  Street. 

Boston,  January  9,  1 909. 
Mr.  John  Nolen, 

1382  Massachusetts  Avenue, 
Harvard  Square, 

Cambridge,  Mass. 
Dear  Mr.  Nolen: — I  am  glad  to  get  your  letter  in  relation  to  the 
State  Park  work  for  Wisconsin.  It  is  an  immensely  important  work, 
and  one  whose  value  the  entire  population  of  Wisconsin  will  appre- 
ciate and  will  be  more  and  more  proud  of  as  the  years  go  on,  should 
your  recommendations  be  realized.  The  example  of  Massachusetts 
in  its  State  Reservations  and  forestry  work,  complemented  by  the  ad- 
mirable efforts  of  the  Trustees  of  the  Public  Reservations,  is  worth 
considering  in  this  connection. 

From  what  I  have  read  of  Wisconsin,  it  strikes  me  that  in  its  scen- 
ery, and  largely  in  the  character  of  its  population,  it  must  be  the  New 
England  of  the  West,  and  in  establishing  the  reservations  or  State 
Parks  you  recommend,  perhaps  it  will  pave  the  way  towards  achiev- 
ing a  historic  position  similar  to  that  which  New  England  now  holds 
in  its  reputation  for  enlightened  policy. 

Most  sincerely  yours, 

Sylvester  Baxter, 

Secretary. 

[50] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts. 

Metropolitan  Park  Commission, 

Boston,  January  12,  1909. 
Mr.  John  Nolen, 

1 382  Harvard  Square, 
Cambridge,  Mass. 
Dear  Mr.  Nolen: — The  value  and  need  of  large  park  reservations 
is  likely  to  be  overlooked  until  it  is  possible  that  the  best  results  can- 
not be  obtained  either  on  account  of  availabletracts  being  broken  into 
by  building  operations,  or  because  the  expense  involved  by  reason 
of  increasing  values  make  it  a  greater  burden  than  the  community  is 
willing  to  bear.  The  Metropolitan  Parks  District  of  Boston  was 
fortunate  in  following  the  lead  of  far-seeing  and  public-spirited  men, 
and  in  acquiring  two  large  wooded  parks  at  reasonable  prices  while 
it  was  still  possible  to  establish  natural  boundaries.  Blue  Hills  Res- 
ervation, of  4,900  acres,  in  the  southern  section,  and  Middlesex  Fells 
Reservation,  of  3,000  acres,  in  the  northern  section,  are  both  easily 
accessible  to  the  thickly  populated  portions  of  the  Metropolitan  Dis- 
trict, which  already  numbers  over  1,200,000  people.  When  the 
park  movement  began  in  Massachusetts  there  were  many  tracts  of 
private  woodland  practically  open  to  public  use.  This  is  changing 
rapidly  with  the  increase  of  population,  and  consequent  activity  in 

[51] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

building.  Inside  of  twenty-five  years  it  is  likely  that  the  children  of 
the  city  will  find  in  these  woods  the  only  opportunity  within  reason- 
able distance  of  their  homes  to  enjoy  the  beauty  and  restfulness  of  the 
forest.  Many  thickly-settled  foreign  communities  are  regretting  their 
lack  of  foresight  in  failing  to  preserve  for  the  present  generation  some 
part  of  the  woods  that  were  the  delight  of  their  earlier  days.  In  a 
comparatively  new  country  with  much  unoccupied  land,  it  is  difficult 
to  realize  that  this  condition  will  inevitably  change,  but  experience 
and  observation  clearly  show  that  the  reservation  of  a  proper  propor- 
tion of  woodland  adds  to  the  health  and  enjoyment  of  the  people, 
and  is  a  duty  which  public  authorities  should  not  postpone. 

Very  truly  yours, 

John  Woodbury, 

Secretary. 


CM] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

Letter  from  President  Charles  R.  Van  Hise, 
University  of  Wisconsin 

"Just  as  Parks  are  an  imperative  necessity  to  large  cities,  so  when 
a  state  becomes  densely  populated  state  parks  will  be  equally  im- 
perative necessities  to  the  people.  To  the  present  time  a  large  part  of 
the  area  of  the  state  of  Wisconsin  has  been  practically  free  territory 
to  be  used  by  the  people  whenever  they  desired.  These  relatively 
uninhabited  areas  have  been  the  hunting  and  camping  grounds,  have 
been  the  places  where  men  and  women  could  go  for  relief  from  their 
cares  and  for  life  out-of-doors.  As  the  state  becomes  inhabited  to  its 
full  capacity,  this  condition  will  pass  away  and  practically  the  only 
land  which  will  be  available  for  such  public  purposes  will  be  the 
lands  owned  by  the  state.  Therefore  while  lands  are  still  cheap  the 
state  should  acquire  in  its  various  parts  a  number  of  parks  which  will 
be  perpetually  the  breathing  grounds  to  be  freely  used  by  the  people 
of  the  state.  In  order  that  this  purpose  be  fully  accomplished  it  will 
be  necessary  that  the  state  provide  for  not  a  single  park,  but  a  num- 
ber, just  as  it  is  necessary  for  a  great  city  to  have  not  one  park  but  a 
number,  so  that  each  inhabitant  may  find  some  readily  accessible 
open  spot.  Thus  it  seems  to  me  to  be  extremely  desirable  that  the 
state  provide  as  soon  as  possible  for  several  sites.  The  Dells,  Devil's 
Lake,  Door  County,  Mississippi  Bluffs,  are  all  well  located  to  serve 
a  considerable  number  of  people." 

Charles  R.  Van  Hise. 

[53] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


Letter  from  the  Hon.  W.  D.  Hoard,  Ex-Governor  of 

Wisconsin 

Fort  Atkinson,  Wisconsin,  January  4,  1909. 
John  Nolen, 

1 382  Harvard  Square, 
Cambridge,  Mass. 
My  dear  Mr.  Nolen: — I  have  your  very  esteemed  letter  of  the 
3 1  st  and  I  am  more  than  pleased  to  send  you  an  opinion  on  the  value 
of  State  Park  reservations,  and  particularly  their  value  to  Wiscon- 
sin. I  v^as  but  slightly  prepared  for  the  revelation  of  natural  scenic 
beauty  and  the  possibilities  that  lay  w^ithin  the  proposed  Door 
County  Park. 

I  sincerely  hope  you  may  be  able  vv^ith  other  influences  in  the  State, 
to  secure  from  the  Legislature  a  liberal  appropriation  to  this  end.  I 
feel  as  though  in  some  particulars,  we  v/ere  almost  at  the  turning 
point  in  making  such  provision  for  our  State,  placing  it  vs^here  it  truly 
belongs,  as  one  of  the  most  charming  States  in  the  Union. 

Your  truly, 

W.  D.  Hoard. 


[54] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 


Letter  from  John  M.  Olin 

President  Madison  Park  and  Pleasure  Drive  Association 

January  12,  1909. 

Dear  Mr.  Nolen: — For  many  years,  I  have  felt  that  Wisconsin 
could  make  no  better  investment  than  the  securing  of  properly  selected 
lands  in  different  parts  of  the  state  for  state  park  reservations.  Ac- 
tion should  not  be  delayed  in  this  matter.  Such  places  are  rapidly 
being  picked  up  by  private  interests.  Already  it  is  quite  impossible 
for  the  people  of  the  state  to  get  to  the  shores  of  many  of  our  most 
beautiful  inland  lakes,  except  by  trespassing  upon  private  owner- 
ship. But  these  lakes  belong  to  the  people.  Our  supreme  court  has 
wisely  decided  in  a  number  of  cases  that  they  are  held  in  trust  by  the 
state  for  its  people,  and  that  not  even  the  legislature  has  the  power  to 
dispose  of,  or  authorize  the  disposition  of,  the  bed  of  any  one  of  these 
lakes  for  any  private  use  or  purpose. 

But  it  is  not  enough  that  the  surface  of  these  lakes  or  the  ground 
covered  by  their  waters,  should  belong  to  the  people.  To  make  these 
possessions  available  there  must  be  secured  to  the  public  at  various 
points  the  lands  bordering  on  these  waters,  and  in  area  sufficiently 
large  to  furnish  to  the  people  an  opportunity  for  outdoor  life  and  re- 
creation.   This  is  a  duty  which  the  state  owes  both  to  the  present  and 

[55] 


State  Parks  of  Wisconsin 

especially  to  the  future.  I  sincerely  hope  that  the  present  legislature 
will  make  such  appropriation  as  may  be  reasonably  necessary  to  se- 
cure at  this  time  a  number  of  reservations  for  state  parks. 

Sincerely  yours, 

John  M.  Olin. 
To  Mr.  John  Nolen, 
Landscape  Architect, 

1 382  Harvard  Square, 
Cambridge,  Mass. 


[56] 


THE  DALLES  OF  THE  ST.  CROIX 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
BERKELEY 

Return  to  desk  from  which  borrowed. 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


OCT  1 2*64-10  All 


LD  21-100m-9,'48(B3998l6)476 


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